I am loving these! Its actually really tragic that people don't stop to think about how amazing and beneficial co-sleeping can be, not to mention completely NORMAL and NATURAL. Thank goodness my husband is a logical and secure man!

Fantastic! Love it! Like "the grumbles" I also didn't tell many people...at first. Now that I've seen how confident and independent my children have become, I can hardly stop singing the praises of cosleeping!!!

People only said stupid crap like that when my 1st baby was little. Now my oldest is 7.5 and Baby #4 is 1.5 and still in my bed. Children #1, 2, and 3 have not been in my bed for a very long time. (They usually all sleep in the same bed, even though they have separate beds.) It's hard for someone to convince me of lies like that when my older kids are NOT in our bed any more, and are independent, happy, and secure.

I'm not a co-sleeper, but it never bothers me when other people are. I just figure it's another parenting choice like breast or bottle, carrier or stroller, cloth diaper or disposable, you get my drift lol. But the first one about pointers on the wedding night made me literally laugh out loud.

I get "so when will you put him in his own bed or the bassinet?" I replied: "what?? HA, he is moving in with his older brother when he wants to." of course there is the "how will they ever sleep?" and i say, "families did it long before we had multi-bedroom houses!"

Good ones! It pisses me off when people who know nothing about co-sleeping give us their opinion. I didn't carry my baby for 40 weeks to then just leave her in some dark room all by herself. I need to nourish her whenever she needs it and being close to her gives her all that extra love from both daddy and mommy. At 17 months now, she has her own bed (never slept in a crib!) and we take turns sleeping with her. Why should a grown up get to snuggle with someone else and not a baby?

Right On Lady...Love it!!!!! I don't keep it a secret. I feel they are the ones that are missing out, not us. Why do the adults get to sleep together, and the children are supposed to sleep alone...doesn't seem right to me.

And if you do any research, you will find that not only are those incidences few and far between, but also due to unsafe sleeping practices, EG drinking, scripts or other drugs, disorders, the list goes on

The fact is, if you don't do the research, saying crap like you did here, makes you appear rather ignorant, it doesn't take much time to look up the benefits and cons of co sleeping, but since you can't seem to take the time to type out whole words, that leads me to believe you would be far to lazy to do such a thing as educate yourself

To each there own, but it would go further if instead of leaving asinine remarks, you simply stated you didn't feel comfortable with it

All parents will choose their own path to parenting, it makes them neither right nor wrong, it makes them them, just because you don't agree with some aspects of how some people choose to live and or parent doesn't make them by any means wrong, indicating such shows a level of immaturity that is sad to see this day n age.

You raise your children as you see fit, let others do the same, be respectful of the fact that nobody has to do or feel the way you do to be right, and leave the sanctimommy bullcrap someplace else, please and thank you

When my sister first expressed concern about us co-sleeping I asked her if she sleeps alone. (No) Asked her how she felt when she did sleep alone. (Sad, Lonely, didn't sleep well). I then said: I carried my baby for nine months where she felt me and heard everything I said or did. She knew my heartbeat from the start. If adults feel the need to sleep with someone else, then why would I make a small helpless baby sleep alone. Ever since she encourages others to co-sleep as well.

interesting point - we want our older daughter to get into a headstart program, but to get in the child needs to be assessed as delayed. Apparently if a child needs to sleep in mom and dad's bed by the age of 3, then they are considered delayed. We laughed, but honestly where we live the program is awesome - the only draw back is that some of the kids come from homes that have ideals/habits we don't agree with. But it's only for a few months until we move somewhere with better resources.

LOVE THIS! I usually say something to this affect: I wouldn't give back all those extra hours of my babies being peaceful and quiet for anything...especially the "tough" days when I get so frustrated with them...laying with them face to face reminds me how much I love that little person and it "recharges" me. It's the same kind of response I give to my dh when he asks why I walk my son to his class when most of the other parents just drop them off at the gate, "Because he WANTS me to...and one day he won't". SOAK UP ALL THOSE PRECIOUS MOMENTS! Once they're gone, they're gone!

I love your comment Holly. Our oldest will be starting school in the fall and we were asked if we needed a bus or not - I said nope we'll take her. The other parents think I'm nuts. I think it's an extra ten minutes I get to be with her. Add that up and it'll make a difference esp since it'll be two whole hours with her learning things from people who don't view her the same way we do as parents.

i dont think ud be so in to it if you awoke in the morning to find ur baby had suffocated under the sheets or you or your partner had been to close to her,yes its happend so do think it hasnt ,crazies get to mothercare.

Translation: I don't think you'd be so into it if you woke in the morning to find your baby had suffocated under the sheets or you or your partner had been too close to her, yes it's happened so don't think it hasn't, crazies get to mothercare.

Rebuttal: Your comment makes no sense:* a baby would never suffocate under a sheet as they could breathe through it.* being close to a baby stimulates a baby to breathe which prevents SIDS. A baby will turn their face away from something pressed against it* any parent with a newborn is aware of their baby's breathing, even during sleep* cosleeping reduces a child's chances of SIDS

Was the last comment meant to say "even crazies make badly worded comments with awful grammar"?

I don't think I have ever felt right about putting my babies in a cot on their own.I believe SIDS is higher in babies that sleep away from the parents. No such thing as being too close, I have never suffocated my children, love is just right. Though it is advised that heavy sleepers, drinkers, smokers etc not sleep with their children. I am a very light sleeper and feel very aware of my children, even my eldest son who often wakes and sleepwalks - he is in the next room and currently sleeps with bro.

I like the responses. Some people are quite ignorant of the benefits to a young child.

Is there any other mammal on earth that pushes its newborns out of the nest at night? Pretty sure animals only do that when they cannot care for the babies, ensuring their death. So why do humans do this? I love sleeping with my baby bear, and I love being her mama bear.

Awesome! Our eldest co-slept for 3.5 years and then shared a room with his younger sister (who interestingly, hated the idea of sleeping in our bed) then our 3rd has co-slept on and off for 4.5 years (sometimes he sleeps with his big bro!) Meanwhile our almost 2 year old co-sleeps on and off as well (we often have both little ones in our bed at the same time!) and we are expecting our 5th in September ... thankfully we have a king size bed! lol!

My oldest co-slept until there just wasn't room in the bed for four at which time he moved to the foot of the bed! Eventually he felt that he would probably be more comfortable in his own bed. By that time he had become the most laid back, confident, well-behaved, well-balanced nine-year old. He still sometimes chooses to sleep on our floor and often comes in for cuddles. Our youngest has never yet slept alone and is four. I look forward to many more snugly nights watching his cute little face and smelling his sweet breath as he sleeps. I love it and no one could persuade me to do anything else.

My sister was done having children before I started, so I got the benefit of her experience when my first was born. She has five, all of whom at least occasionally sleep in her bed, particularly when her husband is not around. They're all confident and extremely independent. All of my children slept in our bed as babies until they were sleeping over 8 hours straight. None of them has ever had their own room, either being in ours in the bed or a crib or sharing a room with each other. My older daughter read a story about gorillas and how the babies cuddle up to their mommies to sleep. I mentioned that human babies naturally do that too. (they all did.)I am far more scared of a SIDS problem if my baby is on the other side of the room and I can't hear whether she's breathing or not. When she's cuddling me, I know she's safe.

My parents co-slept with me (she's Puerto Rican/ he's Dominican). I didn't co-sleep with my twins, because my two daschunds sleep with us and there was no way I'd risk them hurting the babies because I didn't wake up in time. I think it's great if the parents can get a restful night and if they are both on the same page. But I have met couples where one partner co-sleeps and the other is in another room. To me that defeats the purpose of encouraging family closeness.

I love this! Every morning, since my baby became aware of an "outside" world, she wakes up, looks at me and "says" - " You had me enough mommy, all night long, now I gotta go, see ya!".

She is the most independent, self secure, happy, confident baby.

How could my baby sleep with a dry diaper on, how could I take her to potty at night, if it weren't for cosleeping? My baby has never sat in her own urine for more than five minutes - and never slept in it for hours on end - since we cosleep and I can attend to all her needs. (needless to say, she has never had diaper rashes nor have we ever used diaper rash cream (Note: to protect her bum from her own urine)

I use to be embarrassed to admit I co-sleep with my daughter, today 5 months old. I would give reasons why my daughter "needed" to sleep in my bed...now i am honest and say I WANT her to sleep with me. I don't let her cry, night or day, and do everything in my being to keep her trust in me knowing I am always there to meet her needs. I hear the criticism daily but just nod my head and reply, "if I am 'making my bed', I will lie in it...WITH my daughter." :)

I tell people the my daughter is an excellent spooner! I am a single mom and maybe that ruffles some feathers, but well- it's true and we are feel very happy and heathy (and warm) with our arrangement! She never complains about bedtime or gets scared in the night...and neither do I.

First off where is it proven that NOT sleepeing with your kids cuase intimacy problems?

And it's actually proven that having a child sleeping in your bed DOES affect your love life in a bad way. (The kitchen sink is all good, but let's face it that gets old when your back starts to hurt everyday)

Sleeping with your child whe they are babies is all well and done, but as they age, just like Diapers, potty training, and being more independednt, it is our job as (Good parents) to let them move on from one stage to the other. Even if you're child fights it would you let them stay in diapers even if they have to go to school? I would sure hope not....it's our job to provide the right tools to grow up! and sleeping with mommy and daddy just becuase they want to is not a grown up thing to do. my question for those afraid to say NO because they fear it might hurt thier relationship would be...do you say yes to every demand your child gives you? If not aren't you afraid (Just like the bed thing) That you will ruin something?

Of course not becuase it makes no sence....my point is, if you are raising your child with enough Love during the day and kisses and books at night, they should be fine on their own to sleep....if you lack it during the day then koodos to you for trying to get that with them as they sleep at night....and good luck to you in general.

~Stay at home mom, with a 3 year old son I adore, and Adores me. Yet has been sleeping in his own bed for a long time. (Except being a baby for a few months) :)

Goodness!!! I am sorry but having our son at the age of 3 sleeping with us has nothing to do with independedntance or potty training(read the responce above) It has more to do with the LOVE. The love we as a family feel and get from CO SLEEPING. Trust me we get a ton of flack. From family and friends. But it matters NONE! Due to the fact that we know we have one of the MOST secure loving content children ever! WHO wants to sleep alone?, especailly in a house full of your family! Once he chooses himself to go in his own room down the hall to sleep it will be ecouraged! But for now we love the love!! Trust me once they get older they will be off on their until. For now I will TREASURE our time in bed together! Thank you VERY much! Don't knock it until you have tried it!!!

Re: Anonymous Said..."Even if you're child fights it would you let them stay in diapers even if they have to go to school? I would sure hope not....it's our job to provide the right tools to grow up!"

I'm guessing this Anonymous isn't a regular reader of Authentic Parenting. Bring on the unschooling!

That aside, co-sleeping has done wonders for our little family because we GET MORE SLEEP. It isn't always easy (this kid takes up half a king size bed sometimes) but at 18 months, I'm in no hurry to push him "out of the nest" as others have put it. He still needs his mom and dad for cuddles and that has made him no less of an independent little person.

Wonderful list! And I love the warm, informed comments, too :-) Another response I've kept at the ready (but have yet to use, because there's been no need) is "People let their DOGS sleep in the bed with them, why not their CHILDREN?" Another good one is "Parenting doesn't end when the sun goes down!"

My hubby and I share sleep with our 15 month old twins. We used to be all in one king-sized bed, but as the boys got bigger and started moving more in their sleep, we extended our bed with another mattress beside it. It works well, and gives everyone the space they need along with easy access to mama for night time parenting!

"And it's actually proven that having a child sleeping in your bed DOES affect your love life in a bad way. (The kitchen sink is all good, but let's face it that gets old when your back starts to hurt everyday)"

This is so absurd I can barely muster up a response. You're telling us it's PROVEN that our personal love lives are negatively impacted? How about this: My love life is unique and personal, as is everyone else's, and what works for one may not work for another. It's impossible for research to make any definitive conclusion about it because the concept of a "good" love life is 100% relative to the couple in question. My love life goes far beyond the bed, and my bond with my husband has only been strengthened by the addition of our baby to our family. Cosleeping requires a little more creativity, but most relationships benefit from that anyway. If you're with your partner for a lifetime, a few years of having a baby in the bed is no time at all, then you can get back to the regular routine sex that everyone seems to think it so all-important, if that's what you feel defines a "good" love life. Seems like a pretty slim and shallow definition to me.

My favorite question was always "How does your baby sleep?" My answer "like a baby" or if I was feeling feisty when they asked does my baby sleep through the night I would respond "why is he keeping you up?". I was always amazed at how many people where concerned with my baby's sleep habits.

Brilliant! I will definitely try these out. My husband and I are devout co-sleepers, with no plans to change anytime soon. Funny, the longer we co-sleep, the longer I think about extending it. But I'm pretty sure it will stop before my son goes to college!

Just came across this post - LOVE it! so very, very funny and true. :D

One thing I don`t get is how people get all the way out of their beds in the middle of the night and trek down the hall to baby`s room, get them out of the crib, feed them, get them back in, back to sleep, then get back in their bed (often multiple times a night). I`m exhausted just writing that!

Aside from the amazing bonding and other benefits, it`s just a million times easier. :)

I love the idea of co-sleeping. My husband however does not. So, I take her to our guest bedroom and we sleep there most of the time. She is the sweetest little thing I have ever seen. Noone ever questions how we sleep only if she sleeps through the night. She is nearly 5 months old and I am proud to say she sleeps like a little queen at night anywhere from 8-10 hours. Then she wakes up full of smiles and giggles and we eat breakfast. I have noticed that when she does sleep in her crib in her room (even tho its right beside our bedroom) I do not sleep well at all. If she is away from me I can't hear or see her to be sure she's safe. It makes me very nervous and I often wake up and go check on her in the night. As a result of me co-sleeping with her I have noticed that she is very close to me. I often get comments that she is "spoiled" because she would rather be held by me. So what if my child wants to be close to her mother. The first time you see her you somehow expect her to be instantly smitten with you. Sorry people but, I am her mother its not a bad thing that she loves me and trusts me and wants to be close to me. She knows I am safe and that I take care of her, I am proud to have a "spoiled" baby!

These are great! And I do support and believe the benefits of co-sleeping, especially the fact that babies are supposed to wake up throughout the night and that he mother being close can help keep her attuned to the baby and vice versa. However i have to say I do know someone whose infant died of accidentally being rolled over on and suffocated. It was terribly tragic. You have to remember that we've had all our lives to get used to where the edge of the bed is. An infant in your bed is a new thing. I really would recommend the Arms Reach type thing if you have doubts. The other thing is to be careful about any mattress baby is on: http://www.healthychild.com/toxic-sleep/has-the-cause-of-crib-death-sids-been-found/

I hate the comment of, "oh you'll never get them out of your bed." Since this is our first, and she's only 10 months, I'm not "worrying" about when she'll wean herself from our bed or not. Just like previous people have mentioned, I can't imagine getting out of bed to nurse her through the night.

My daughter is waking in the middle of the night from teething right now. Since we cosleep, we never really had sleepless nights in the early months. I'm just now getting sleepless nights, and people at work don't understand why all of the sudden I'm exhausted. When I explain it, then I get the comments of "well, maybe you should really start getting her used to her own crib." Funny, cause I don't think that's going to change her teeth coming in!

People sometimes talk about the one baby they heard suffocated with their parents in bed (without mentioning if medication, drugs, alcohol, obesity etc was involved) but SIDS is far more common in babies in cots and yet you hardly ever hear mainstream parents saying cots are dangerous?!?!?

Cosleeping found us nearly 8 years ago. I hadn't given it much thought, however, after giving birth to my first, it felt unnatural to shove him off to his own bed. My husband was in Iraq for the first 5 months of our sons life, so upon returning home he wanted every second, day and night with his sweet boy. I also believe that our new family closeness helped with my husbands PTSD. We slept with him until HE decided he was ready at the ripe old age if 5...so old!! Our second did not bed share, as it didn't work for her. However she shared our room until she was 3. the little one who is 2 co sleeps. And if it works for our twins due soon, then perfect!!!

I had a lot of people tell me it was wrong to have my baby in bed with me because I was enabling her. I would nicely respond with "Enabling her to do what? Trust that her mommy won't abandon her?" Good! :)

I co-sleep with my children also. I have taken a lot of flack from family members and friends. So happy to see some comments that I can throw back.

I love sleeping w/my two boys ages 7&5. I don't think I'm spoiling them although I have also gotten those comments. I always respond with the fact that they are not spoiled...just very loved. I had a miscarriage before my first was born so I was very protective and concerned when he came into the world. Not to mention I had gone into HELLP syndrome and he had breathing issues at first and ended up back in the hospital. Life is fragile.

I was also an older mother who had waited a long time for my little bundles of joy. My first I had at 39 and my second I was 41. I work 40 hours plus a week and love the fact that I can co-sleep w/my children. I feel like I do not have enough time with them since I do have to work. Sure...if you are a stay at home mom and get to bask in the glory of being home with your children all day long maybe night time and sleeping by yourself is the only way you get some "me" time and it's not for you. But don't judge someone for loving their children and wanting to spend every available moment w/them.

My boys are very loving, independent, intelligent boys. I always get comments from teachers, coaches, friends, etc on how well-adjusted, intelligent, mature, sweet, polite, & loving children they are. So I don't feel like it's affected them negatively. My mother in law thinks there's something "sick" about it to which I respond..."and it's not sick to sleep with a dog?" or "It takes a sick & demented mind to even think that co-sleeping with your own children is unnatural".

I will co-sleep w/my children for as long as they need. One day they will grow up and not need mommy. For now...I'm basking in the glory of them needing my undivided attention, hugs, love and kisses for as long as they aren't embarrassed by them. :)

Co-sleeping rocks!! Many new parents dread night times, being up and down with a baby all night. I look forward to night time ... I love the hours lying next to my peaceful baby, it's been 10 weeks and I'm yet to hear her cry at night. I'm sure most co-sleepers have a similar experience.

LOL these are hilarious..Since we started bedsharing I look forward to nighttime and during the day I can't wait to snuggle with her at bedtime. Before we were just co-sleeping ( cradle next to my bed ) and it just wasn't working out and nighttime was such a battle.

Also there is something called a Snuza it is an alarm that attaches to their diaper. My daughter wears hers 24/7 as she is still only 4 months old. I don't have to worry about checking if she is still breathing if she is napping in the car for example. If no breathing is detected for 30 seconds an alarm sounds and it really does work - My husband has tested it many times by placing it on his stomach and holding his breath. Of course I still take all the necessary precautions but it is nice to know.

I would love to hear from a few honest husbands...co-sleeping almost ruined our marriage - my sweet husband thankfully of 20 years just wanted to "keep peace" and I just thought I was honestly doing the right thing and I "thought" he was on board...but in reality it almost ruined our marriage. Our children may turn out feeling loved and balanced but what about our men? Back then I was a full time SAHM and I gave pretty much all of my day to our children, when daddy comes home the gears need to switch to him and "us" time. He really resented having a little person in between us, not because he did not love our child, because he is the most loving and doting father ever. And not just because he wanted to have sex all of the time (and yes use other areas of the house, but when you have teens AND babies, that does not work so well) he just wanted closeness...and I did not realize that it was all about ME, really after 20 years and looking back co sleeping really was all about me and wanting to cherish the moments with my child, feeling like I was a bad mom if I let them whimper in the other room, and that I would be so much more sleep deprived if I did not have them in bed to nurse at the drop of a hat. I think that co sleeping can work well, but first ladies I highly encourage you to have a really deep heart to heart with your man and give him time to think on his response. (I have in the past wanted and immediate answer, men dont work that way all the time)Blessings.

A woman found about my co-sleeping with my then 10-month old daughter and she protested, "Oh, that's no good. You're babying her."I looked at the woman like she was too weird for this world and said, very slowly,"So, what you're saying is, I'm wrong for BABYinga BABY."

I had posted something on fb like baby I wands sleep, stop kicking me, and a girl said "don't let her sleep with you, sleep is to nice." "I sleep just fine with my baby, even better than if she was in her own bed!

Love all this discussion. Although we are only semi-cosleeping now (I lay with my 2 yr old till she's asleep, sometimes fall asleep with her, then transfer her to her bed... then usually by morning she's made her way into our room).... I like to think of it as "teaching sleep by example". Almost everything else my daughter has learned has been by mimicing what we do... so why not sleeping too?

Hello! Thank you for these comments. I cosleep with my 1 year old. I love it, I agree with you all. BUT I have a questions. My husband and I want to have a second child. How do you deal w/ having a new born and cosleeping with older child? Does the older child get jealous?